Humane Society Plans Expansion to Transform Animal Welfare

Today, exciting news broke about how the Humane Society of Greater Dayton is in talks to purchase land near Austin Landing. In May of 2016, we spoke to all of you about our Vision for the Future for animal care in the Miami Valley. With our Vision, we plan to:

Tackle our community’s pet overpopulation

Expand our ability to care for animals who are abused

Provide more homes for pets in need

Assist struggling families in taking better care of their pets

Last night, members of the Miami Township Board of Trustees met and agreed to allow a purchase agreement to be signed pending due diligence by the Humane Society of Greater Dayton. This is a very exciting time for not only the Humane Society of Greater Dayton, but for the community as a whole. After years of extensive research, strategic planning and feasibility studies we have listened to our donors, supporters and community members and it has been determined that we need an adoption facility in a high-traffic area that will gain more exposure to the animals in our care, which will ultimately find more animals forever homes faster. We have seen with our more than 20 current offsite adoption locations that having animals in high-traffic areas can greatly impact the number of animals who find loving, forever homes and we want to do everything in our power to give as many homeless animals homes as we can.

This is an extremely exciting time to be with the Humane Society of Greater Dayton. For years we have been planning and researching what choice is best to impact the lives of so many animals in our community and we are now moving forward in the right direction to make this vision a reality.

The Humane Society of Greater Dayton is still early in the planning process, but this is a big step for the organization and not one that was taken lightly. With every decision we make we wholeheartedly consider the impact to the animals in our care. If we move forward with this land, the only facility that will be located at the Austin Landing location at this time will be the Adoption Center. There is also currently a structure on this property that will be repurposed to fit our needs We plan on expanding our current location at 1661 Nicholas Road to include a High-Volume Spay/Neuter Clinic, which will increase our ability to spay/neuter animals from 4,000 yearly to between 20,000 and 25,000 animals each year. We will also include a Cruelty/Neglect Structure that can better house large-scale cases as well as large-breed animals who have been rescued from abusive situations. Lastly, we will also include a Full-Service Animal Hospital at our current location. Fees will be on a sliding scale so that no one will have to worry about properly caring for the animals in their home no matter their income level.

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, we receive donations in many different ways. The money being used to cover the cost of the land and building will not be coming from monies designated for animal care. This money has been given for the growth of our organization. These funds are completely separate from our day-to-day expenses and the two funds are not mutually exclusive. In the past 115 years of serving the Miami Valley, we have proven to be fiscally responsible with all funds donated to our facility. We currently have a 4-star rating with Charity Navigator as well as a Platinum-standing with Guidestar, two national third-party watchdog groups ensuring nonprofits remain transparent and good stewards to all funding received. We receive no government funding and all support for this project comes through donations from our community.

Again, we are thrilled to continue to grow to better service the Miami Valley and look forward to 115 more years of helping ensure all animals are valued and free from suffering in our community. For more information on this campaign, we encourage everyone to check out www.UnLEASHtheChange.org.

The Humane Society of Greater Dayton is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and receives no county or state funding. It is not affiliated with any other organization including the Humane Society of the United States. As the area’s oldest, most-established no-kill animal welfare agency our organization relies solely on donations from individuals, companies and grants to run our programs and services. For more information, visit www.hsdayton.org.